Data centers are the focal point of leveraging information technology assets to optimize the competitive value of an information system. For small companies, data centers have typically evolved in a haphazard manner, resulting in a situation where processors and storage devices are underutilized, usable communications capacity is overlooked, collaboration and information sharing is minimal, maintenance requirements are high, expansion or reconfiguring is expensive, protection is patchy, seemingly simple modifications turn into giant challenges, and full recovery from disastrous failure is virtually impossible.
Cisco's most recent connectivity products and tools support a new model of data center design that permits continual improvements in processor, storage, network topology, and application technologies in a manageable and cost-effective way. Progent's engineers can help you to identify and implement Cisco's network technology to create a robust basis for your data center and to improve your data center operations in vital areas such as:
- Processor and storage utilization
- End-to-end security policy enforcement
- Processor proliferation
- Regulatory compliance
- Disaster recovery
The business advantages that can accrue as a result of engaging Progent's Cisco-certified consultants to optimize your data center include:
- Lower costs: permits IT management to substantially lower capital expenses via integration and more efficient utilization of previously separate equipment, lower maintenance costs through simplifying and automating management tasks, and reduce air conditioning and energy bills.
- Greater Business Flexibility: permits IT to respond quickly to evolving business demands by facilitating rapid provisioning of application and infrastructure services from shared aggregations of consolidated processor, storage, and network resources. This helps streamline administrative procedures and enable policy-based management.
- Better Network Robustness: allows IT to react to breakdowns or intrusions by safeguarding connections, programs, and data through advanced levels of fault tolerance, pervasive protection, and disaster recovery.
- Optimized Service Levels: allows IT to optimize business service levels by providing secure, accelerated connectivity to data center-resident applications and information from any place and at any moment across the organization.
Examples of Progent's Consulting Services for Cisco-based Data Centers
Progent's network experts can provide a broad range of services that can enable companies of all sizes design a Cisco-powered infrastructure that will offer your data center a reliable and secure basis for existing applications and future expansion. Consulting services feature:
- Building efficient firewall protection solutions based on PIX and ASA firewall appliances
- Deploying and troubleshooting protected VPN access for linking data centers to other data centers, corporate sites, and mobile users
- Planning, and implementing resilient non-stop switching, routing, and Internet access environments so that single point failures do not interrupt productivity
- Configuring multiple ISPs with transparent transfer using BGP protocols. Progent can help clients along the complete path of interaction with Internet supervisors, getting ASN numbers and IP addresses assigned, working with ISP carriers to prepare their systems, and deploying and checking customer equipment.
- Building segmented and protected virtual LAN (VLAN environments to support VMware and Microsoft virtual server systems
- Designing, installing and assisting customers to manage 24x7 IPS systems so that assaults can be detected rapidly and remediated before they impact productivity
- Planning, configuring, and supporting load balancing solutions. Working with customers, Progent can align expressed requirements to the best solutions and deploy load balancing at the application and server levels, or connectivity infrastructure layer. These designs allow for transparent and scalable growth, reliability, security, and fault tolerance.
- Progent knows how to design practical network management solutions using SNMP and Cisco's Netflow protocols, along with Cisco Security Manager and various outside vendor products that present customers a powerful look into the activity of their data center's infrastructure
- Configuring and supporting advanced data center class routers and switches such as the Catalyst 4500, 6500, and 6800 Series switches, Nexus 5000, 6000, and 7000 switches, and Cisco 7200 and 7600 routers.
To see more information about Progent's consulting support for Cisco solutions, choose a topic:
If you wish to get in touch with Progent about professional expertise for Cisco networking, phone 1-800-993-9400 or refer to Contact Progent.